Stir-fried clams with krachai, galangal
and Thai basilPhat hoi laai samun phrai
SERVES 4-6
“Typically, I spend my time first ferreting out some great version of
an herbaceous soup or fiery jumble of flesh and then figuring out
how to faithfully recreate it,” says Ricker. “Occasionally I’ll have to
identify stand-ins for ingredients I can’t get, or I’ll piece together
a composite of a few of my favourite versions. This dish is a rare
departure. I’ve eaten many stir-fried clams in Thailand, most often
spiked with the slightly sticky paste called naam phrik phao that
gives the dish its flavour profile – sweet from palm sugar, funky
from preserved shrimp product, and hot from chillies. But I prefer
this version, constructed not from the memories of empty plates,
but from reading the limited but fascinating English-language
literature on the food of Thailand. Reading and experimenting led
me to what I think would cause no sneers in Thailand: briny clams
in a vibrant broth headlined by a highly aromatic combination of
fresh chillies, Thai basil, and krachai, a spindly rhizome with an
earthy, peppery flavour.”
455 gm clams, or cockles,
scrubbed
1 tsp cornmeal
14 gm (4 peeled) garlic cloves,
halved lengthways
6 gm (4) stemmed fresh red
Thai chillies, thinly sliced
2 tbsp neutral-flavoured oil
(such as rice bran or canola)
1 tbsp peeled galangal, cut
into matchsticks
1 tsp thinly sliced krachai
(see note)
1 tbsp Thai fish sauce
2 tbsp lime juice
1 tsp caster sugar
½ cup Thai basil leaves
1 tbsp finely sliced (6mm)
spring onions
1 Firmly tap the shells of any
open clams. If they don’t close
by themselves, they’re dead
and should be discarded.
2 Combine 2.8 litres water
and 45gm (5 tbsp) sea salt in
a bowl and stir until the salt
dissolves. Stir in the cornmeal,
add the clams, and then add
225gm (1 cup) ice. Let the
clams sit for 1 hour to purge
the sand. Drain and rinse well.
3 Pound the garlic and chillies
with a mortar and pestle just
until the garlic is in small pieces
and the mixture is wet-looking
(not a paste). Set aside 1 tbsp
for the dish. Reserve the
remainder for another use.
4 Heat a wok over medium
heat, add the oil, and swirl to
coat the sides of the wok.
When the oil shimmers, add the
chilli-garlic mixture, galangal,
and krachai and remove the wok
from the heat. Cook off the heat,
stirring constantly and quickly,
until the mixture is fragrant but
not coloured (30 seconds to
1 minute). Do yourself a favour
and avoid taking too deep or
too close a sniff.
5 Put the wok back on the
heat, increase the heat to high,
add the clams and fish sauce,
and cook, stirring constantly,
for a minute. Add 180ml water
or Thai pork stock, lime juice,
and sugar, stir well, and cover
the wok with a lid. Cook,
shaking the wok occasionally,
until the clams open (about
3 minutes). Turn off the heat,
add the basil leaves, and toss
well. Transfer to a bowl. Sprinkle
with spring onion and serve
right away.
NoteFresh krachai, or wild
ginger, is occasionally
availablefrom Thai grocers;
if it’s unavailable, substitute
fresh ginger, or krachai in
brine, sold at Thai grocers,
soaking it in cold water
before use.